A Healthy living journey can be really difficult to execute. Here are three tips that will help you succeed in your endeavors!
You guys know that I have a love for fitness, it is my place to escape all of the crazy. When my day is super stressful at work (or even at home) I go the gym, put on my Beats by Dre headphones and do some work until the magical endorphins appear. My weight issues have fluctuated from high to low but one thing that has always remained consistent is my daily determination to exercise.
I started this blog years ago because I was pregnant and couldn’t do what I LOVED to do (exercise like crazy) because of very painful sciatica. The blog then evolved into a message that showed moms, stay at home moms, working women, working women who were moms, that you can always find time for fitness. Always.
During the last sermon of the year, my pastor taught us the three things a man should have being the head of the family. As I thought about these three things, I realized that you need these three things to stay on track with your healthy living journey as well.
1) Decisiveness: There may come a point where you are sick of how you look or how you eat. Nothing will happen in your journey until you make the decision to change. For example: I knew I have had issues with my eating for the past 2 years.
When I came home from Blogalicious I saw myself in pictures and made the decision to change. Making that decision has changed my perspective but it has also made things that much harder because I can no longer do what I used to. But with the changes I have done more than I was able to in 3 months than I have in 2 years.
2) Consistency: Looking back at my journey, this was the one thing I struggled with the most. I really had a wondering eye when it came to diets. I saw what was working for one person so I tried it for a few weeks. Then I heard whispers at a conference about what worked for this person so I tried that. Then there are all of the diet trends that get thrown at you daily like Paleo, low carb, high carb, gluten-free, weight watchers, Jenny Craig, fat free, vegan, South beach–the list goes on.
I wanted the best body possible so I was willing to try all of these things. If it didn’t work after 2 weeks, I gave up and moved on. Now that I have been calorie counting consistently and logging my foods daily the major transformation has begun. There are certain days weeks where I flirt with trying a new program because I am frustrated with the slow progress but I know in the end consistency will get me through, and it will get you through as well.
3) Strength: this is a doosie when it comes to working out and weight-loss. There are so many days out of the week where is takes a ton of strength to even get out of the bed much less workout. It’s about finding strength in the moments that you never would have even thought about before. For me it’s the little things, saying no to my husband every night as he offers me non healthy foods to share with him. Saying no to the cookie barrage of the holidays. There are occasions where I still say YES but those are much fewer and far between.
I find strength in saying no. It reinforces the journey that I am on. It takes a ton of strength to tell your friends that you have plans, to ignore the side eyes, to close your ears to the mocking giggles and the claims that you are “missing out”. You need strength to make decisions and you need strength to stay consistent.
What are some more fun healthy living journey posts to check out?
- Free Healthy Living Planner For Kids Of All Ages
- Top 10 Healthy Living Podcasts
- 5 Elements Of A Healthy Mindset aka How To Get Your Mind Right Today
- Delicious Easy Healthy Snack Ideas For Movie Night
Do you agree? Which tips would you add?
Hi! I’m Nellie. I am an entrepreneur, a busy mama of 3 and a wife to my high school sweetheart. I have been sharing content for over 12 years about how to cook easy recipes, workout tips and free printables that make life a little bit easier. I have been featured in places like Yahoo, Buzzfeed, What To Expect, Mediavine, Niche Pursuits, HuffPost, BabyCenter, Mom 2.0, Mommy Nearest, Parade, Care.com, and more!
Get comfortable and be sure to come hang out with me on social. Don’t forget to grab your free fitness journal before you go!
Tamieka
Thursday 4th of February 2016
Great tips!
I would add build a positive support system-one of encouragement and accountability.
Janine Huldie
Thursday 4th of February 2016
I love the idea of Throwback Thursday for blogging and may have to steal this one soon and the perfect article here to revisit here on healthy living as I most definitely need a bit of a reminder lately myself. Thanks Nellie :)
Allie
Thursday 4th of February 2016
I love how you applied the words of your pastor to fitness because these are all so true! I say it all the time - being fit and healthy is HARD!! But, it's also amazingly rewarding. And, I can relate to saying no every night to whatever my husband is indulging in because he is always indulging!!! Keep up the great work Nellie and continue to ignore the side eye. You are doing YOU and you do it so well :-)